


Flat White

by LucidNightmare



Category: The 100 (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Coffee, Coffee Shops, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-08-15
Updated: 2016-08-15
Packaged: 2018-08-08 23:06:39
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,379
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7777240
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LucidNightmare/pseuds/LucidNightmare
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Despite moving away from home to be independent, Clarke cannot help but to cling to what is familiar in a completely foreign city. When a peculiar customer enters the cafe on a particularly rainy day, Clarke learns to adapt into her new home. A modern AU story.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Flat White

“I can’t believe this.”

The sky was grey as the raindrops slapped against the windows. A gust of wind swept the giant oak tree, leaving a trail of autumn leaves behind as passersby hurried along, desperately holding onto their fragile umbrellas.

Clarke wondered if it had something to do with the changing seasons. It ’s been less than a year since she moved to Boston and the weather has been very unpredictable, especially in the past few weeks. The sky had been blue only few minutes ago, now it was depressingly grey.

She should have just accepted Raven’s offer and moved in with her; after all, who doesn’t want to live in Los Angeles? Raven and Clarke had already flatted together when Raven came to Australia as an exchange student, so it made sense. Clarke had even started looking for jobs there - until her mother intervened, anyway.

Clarke was doing fine, but only just. The freedom that came with being independent was almost exhilarating, but she just didn’t know what to do with it. Clarke liked the city, liked her studies, liked her side job here - but they were all too foreign. As much as she abhorred her life back in Australia, she missed being surrounded by familiar things. She didn’t want to admit it, but it was blindingly obvious. Clarke was homesick.

Just then, a little tap on the counter jolted her out of her thoughts. A customer stood in front of her with a bemused expression, drenched in rain. “Something on your mind?”

“Oh goodness, I am so sorry!” Clarke felt her cheeks flush as she frantically tried to stand up straight. “I don’t do that often, I swear.”

“Don’t worry about it. It’s one of those days, aye?” There was something familiar with the way he spoke, especially when he ended the sentence in a rising tone. Curiosity bubbled as Clarke stared at the way his eyes crinkled when he smiled. Had she met him before?

“Yeah, rainy days has a nostalgic feel to it, you know?”

“It does. My sister refuses to listen to anything but Adele when it rains.”

“Well, maybe your sister is onto something.”

“I don’t know, is she?” Despite the exasperated tone of his voice, it was clear that he adored his sister. “She plays those damned music loudly enough to keep me awake all night. Man, I’d rather she listen to some random boy bands out there. At least their songs are upbeat.”

As ridiculous as it was, Clarke couldn’t hide her amusement at the thought Hello playing on the background as this bulk of a man struggled to sleep. Now that she would pay to see. He’d noticed her smiling and ruffled his hair in frustration, sending spray of water all over the counter.

“You’ll regret it once that happens, mark my words.” Clarke grabbed a hand towel nearby and offered it to him. ”Here, You’ll catch a cold.”

He blinked and stared.

“It’s clean. The one I’ve been using all day is sitting over there - look!”

He didn’t look to see where her fingers pointed. Instead, he smiled as he took the towel from her hand.

“Thank you.”

At that moment, his face beamed like none other Clarke had seen before. She noted how his forehead scrunched just slightly, how his lips pulled up to flash his teeth, and how his eyes shone with radiance.

Her heart started beating rapidly.

Flustered, she moved behind the coffee machine in haste. “So, um, what would you like to order?” Her voice trembled slightly. God, did he notice? She stole a glance when he didn’t answer. He was reading the menu above the counter as he dried his face with the towel. So he didn’t notice. Clarke silently thanked whatever deity she could think of in that moment.

“I’ll have a large latte, I guess.”

“Takeaway?”

“I’ll have it here, thank you. I was hoping to wait it out, you know. I don’t have an umbrella.”

“Ah, right. It won’t be a moment!”

Clarke hands moved briskly as she got to work. She enjoyed this part of the work most. The smell of the freshly brewed coffee and warm milk hung in air and she took a deep breath of the scent. Creating a cup of coffee brought Clarke comfort - partially because she loved the drink, no matter the type or form it took, but mostly because it reminded her of her dad, Jake Griffin.

Her memories of him had started to fade away, but she still remembered the whiff of his scent from the times he hugged her. Thanks to his frequent overnight research sessions, Jake Griffin always smelled like a cup of espresso. He’d let her have a sip when she was young - the bitter and sour taste was still fresh on her mind. Clarke swore that she’d never drink another cup of coffee ever again. He’d simply chuckled and patted her head afterwards.

Perhaps he knew she’d come to love the drink. After all, he often joked about coffee being a legalised drug. ’Everyone hates it at first, but the bitter taste quickly grows on people. ‘ he used to say, ’You’ll understand once you get older, bubba.’

“A large cup of latte as you’ve requested.” Clarke singed as she placed a red mug in front of the man. She went a little crazy and did a little fern on it - it was one of the best one she made to date. He probably wouldn’t notice, but she did, and she was mighty pleased with herself.

Despite her pleasure, she couldn’t help but to feel a little anxious as she watched him raise the mug to his lips. What if he didn’t like it, for some reason?

“Mmm.” he sighed after the sip. “It’s really good.”

“You’re not just saying that to be polite, right?”

“Hey, I happen to be quite snobby with my coffee. You just don’t know it.”

“Are you sure?”

“Urr… Sorry, what’s your name?”

“Clarke.”

“Well Clarke. It’s good. “ He stared right into her eyes as he slowly spoke the next three words. “Really, really good.”

And it was when he said those last three words when it suddenly clicked for Clarke. The way he stresses his e’s and o’s - it was much more apparent when he spoke slowly.

“Are you from Australia?”

“Yeah, I am.“ He seemed confused by the sudden change of topic. “How did you know?”

“Your accents - though it was really hard to recognise them until now.”

“Yeah, it’s been a wee while since I’ve lived down south. Hardly anyone notice the accent, much less think me an Australian.” He paused as he studied her. “Actually, I think you might be the first one to figure it out on your own in Boston.”

“Oh really? Is that a good thing?”

“I’ve lived here for the past decade and a bit, so yes. It’s rather impressive.”

“Thank you, thank you.” Clarke dramatically bowed, her hand holding out the imaginary skirt. The man laughed.

“Hey, you know what? I’ll make you a cup of flat white if you decide to come back next time. I can make one just like how they do back home. Complimentary for our fellow Aussie.”

“You from Australia as well?” He asked.

“Melbourne. I lived there all my life until last year.”

“You don’t have an accent, though.”

“Both my parents were born in America, but they moved to Australia right before I was born.” Clarke grinned mischievously as she continued in Australian accent. “That means I can speak both accent without too much of a hassle.”

It took him couple of seconds to process the information. When he did, he opened his mouth to protest - and was cut off by another customer entering the cafe.

Clarke had few guesses as to what he wanted to say. So before attending to the new customer, she pulled her tongue out at the man. He wouldn’t be able to complain about such petty things when someone else was around. The man seemed to have figured out what she was thinking; Clarke saw him guffaw as he shook his head from her periphery.

Smug with a small victory, Clarke smiled more widely than it was necessary as she greeted the customer.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone!  
> This is my first time writing a Bellarke story - actually, this is my first fanfic ever! I'm both excited and nervous. Please let me know what you think about this prologue!  
> I don't know when I will update Chapter 1 just yet. I have planned out the entire story already, but there's a lot of things to study; assignments to hand in, essays to write - you know, the usual student stuff. If I get a good response then maybe I'll update as soon as I possibly can! I'm still planning to write whenever the time allows, though.  
> Thank you so much for reading this story! All feedbacks are welcome!
> 
> I also realise that not a lot of people may know what a Flat White is - Flat White is a type of coffee that is very similar to latte, but stronger. It tastes like Coffee with milk rather than milk with coffee, if that makes any sense. It originated in Australia or New Zealand, and it's one of the most popular drinks down there. If you get a chance to drink Flat White, you should definitely give it a go!


End file.
